The Dawning of a Rebellion: Riverclan
by mevsyousvthem9
Summary: Blotchkit was never wanted by his family. He will be trained by the now ruling Dark Forest, since the Clans lost the final battle with them. He must choose right from wrong, and what he will do about it. Join Blotchkit on his journey to restore the warrior code, and all of Starclan. Rated T just to be safe
1. PrologueAllegiances

The Dawning of a Rebellion: Riverclan

**ALLEGIANCES**

**Thunderclan**

**Leader:**

Thornclaw – Golden brown tabby tom **Dark Forest Warrior**

**Deputy:**

Brackenfur – Golden brown tabby tom

Apprentice: Molepaw

**Warriors:**

Hazeltail – Small gray-and-white she-cat

Foxleap – Redish tabby tom

Rosepetal – Dark cream she-cat

Berrynose – Cream colored tom

**Apprentices:**

Molepaw – Brown-and-cream tom

**Queens:**

Sorreltail- Tortoise-and-white she-cat with amber eyes

(Mother of Lillykit – Dark tabby she-cat with white patches, and Seedkit – Very pale ginger she-cat)

**Elders:**

Mousefur- Small dusky brown she-cat

**Shadowclan**

**Leader:**

Tigerstar – Dark brown tabby tom with unusually long front claws **Dark Forest Member**

**Deputy:**

Darkstripe – Dark gray tabby tom **Dark Forest Member**

**Warriors:**

Clawface – Brown battle scarred tom **Dark Forest Member**

Antpelt – Brown tom with one black ear** Dark Forest Member**

Silverhawk– Ragged, pale gray tom** Dark Forest Member**

Redwillow – Mottled brown-and-ginger tom **Dark Forest Warrior**

Snowtuft – Small White tom** Dark Forest Member**

Toadfoot – Dark brown tom

Oakfur – Small brown tom

Crowfrost - black-and-white

Olivenose – Tortoiseshell she-cat

Owlclaw - Light brown tabby tom

Shrewfoot – Gray she-cat with white feet

Dawnpelt – cream furred she-cat

Pinenose – Black she-cat

Littlecloud – Small brown tabby tom, former medicine cat

**Queens:**

Kinkfur - tabby she-cat with long fur that sticks out at all angles

(Mother of Stripekit – Dark brown tom with faint stripes, and Sedgekit – Light brown she-cat)

Ivytail – Black, white, and tortoiseshell she-cat

(Mother of Harekit - Light brown tom, Tinykit – Tortoiseshell and white she-cat, and Wolfkit – Dark brown tom with a black tail and muzzle)

**Elders:**

Cedarheart – Dark gray tom

Tallpoppy – Long-legged light brown tabby she-cat

**Windclan**

**Leader:**

Thistleclaw – Mottled gray-and-white tom **Dark Forest Member**

**Deputy:**

Breezepelt – Black tom with yellow eyes **Dark Forest Warrior**

Apprentice: Larkpaw

**Warriors:**

Harespring – Brown-and-white tom **Dark Forest Warrior**

Whitetail – Small white she-cat

Nightcloud – Black she-cat

Gorsetail – Very pale gray and white tom with blue eyes

Leaftail – Dark tabby tom with amber eyes

Heathertail – Light brown tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Krestrelflight - Mottled brownish-gray tom with white splotches, former medicine cat

**Apprentices:**

Larkpaw – Gray she-cat **Dark Forest Warrior**

**Queens:**

Swallowtail – Dark gray she-cat

(Adopted mother of Snowkit – White she-cat, Whitekit – Strong white tom, and Coldkit – White she-cat that constantly shivers)

**Elders:**

Webfoot - Dark gray tabby tom

**Riverclan**

**Leader:**

Hawkfrost – Dark borwn tabby tom with a white underbelly **Dark Forest Member**

**Deputy:**

Shredtail – Dark brown tabby tom with an injured tail **Dark Forest Member**

**Warriors:**

Mapleshade - Ginger-and-white she-cat **Dark Forest Member**

Sparrowfeather – Small, mottled brown tabby she-cat **Dark Forest Member**

Graymist – Pale gray tabby she-cat

Apprentice: Troutpaw

Mintfur – Light gray tabby tom

Pebblefoot – Mottled gray tom

Apprentice: Rushpaw

Mallownose – Light brown tabby tom

Robinwing - Tortoiseshell-and-white tom

Willowshine - Dark gray tabby she-cat, former medicine cat

**Apprentices:**

Troutpaw – Pale gray tabby she-cat

Rushpaw – Light brown tabby tom

**Queens:**

Duskfur – Brown tabby she-cat

(Mother of Shellkit – Light brown tabby she-cat)

Mosspelt – Tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes

(Mother of Blotchkit – Dark brown tabby tom with scattered white patches, Songkit – Pretty tortoiseshell she-cat with a clear, sing-songy voice, Larkkit – Light gray tabby she-cat, Darkkit – Light gray tom with dark stripes)

**Elders:**

Dapplenose – Mottled gray she-cat

Pouncetail – Ginger-and-white tom

Prologue

_Screeches filled the unnatural shaped hollow as a battle raged within it. Solid cats fought with shadowy figures, and many of the living lay dead on the ground. There was a dark tabby tom, his amber eyes still open, staring death in the face. Another cat, a light gray she-cat with her ear pricked, lay on the edge of camp, deep cuts running along her body. One by one each living cat got pinned by the shadows, the blood seeping from their wounds making them weak. _

_One large tabby shadow, a strong resemblance to the younger one dead on the ground, had pinned a smaller ginger tom, though he was still fighting hard to break free. The tom said _"The Dark Forest has beat the all _mighty_ Thunderclan! Though shown to other clans, we will give you no mercy! This clan shall pay for what they have done! Starting with you, _kittypet" he spat the last word at the tom beneath him, hate glowing in the shadow's amber eyes. Grinning slyly he slowly cut the ginger cat's neck, watching the blood flow out with his life._

"No! Firestar!"_ said a sandy she-cat. Pushing off her enemy she lunged at the shadow, claws outstretched. But the large tom easily pushed her aside, laughing slightly at her desperate attempt to save her mate. _

"Cant you see Sandstorm? Its over." _he meowed, a snarl hidden in his voice _

"Its never over Tigerstar. Thunderclan will always fight against you" _Sandstorm spat, struggling to her paws. _

_Tigerstar slowly padded up to her, observing her. He easily pushed her to the ground and surveyed her face. _"Sandstorm, how proud you always were. Always loyal to your so called clan, never giving up. Too bad your precious clan will be no more. But I wont make you watch them die. Instead, Ill let them watch you slowly leave them instead" _and with one swift movement he ended her life as well. _

_Tossing her aside he gazed proudly down at his warriors _"Kill all of Firestar's kin. Cloudtail, Leafpool, and all their mates or past mates. Take the young kits and bring them to other clans. Dont hesitate to take other lives if needed" _Tigerstar ordered his followers and padded out of camp, leaving his warriors to do the work._

_ About half the shadows jumped off their enemy, but some stayed on top, looking down at their prey. A strong white tom was struggling, trying to get out of a dark tabby's grip. Another cat, white with ginger patches, hissed at the cat on top of her, her already mauled face bloody from new cuts. One by one they stopped moving, a pool of blood surrounding them. Another cat, a tabby she-cat, had regret in her eyes as the life seeped away. She seemed to mouth the word "Crowfeather" before dying, and a life time of memories clouded her eyes. The only remaining struggling cat was a golden tabby tom, who seemed to be unscathed. He threw the tabby cat with cold, blue eyes on top of him and pounced, anger blazing in his eyes. _

_Then a small, gray tom rasped _"Lionblaze...dont" _The golden tabby turned his head to the voice, his eyes questioning _

"Its better to not fight...not to hurt our clan more..." _he coughed, small drops of blood escaping his mouth. Lionblaze opened his mouth to protest, but then only nodded, steeping off the cat. Without hesitating, the tabby tom launched himself at the golden tom's neck, biting into it deeply. Lionblaze collapsed, his withering body the only thing moving in the still hollow. _

"Nice kill Hawkfrost, he had to surrender before you could beat him" _said a gray-and-white tom, contempt in his eyes _

"I'd like to see you do better Thistleclaw. Now go collect those kits, I heard one was named after your own" _Hawkfrost shot back, kicking the dead body aside. Thistleclaw narrowed his eyes at his fellow warrior, but walked into the nursery, easily pushing aside the queen guarding her kits. Picking up three snow white kits in his jaw and another dark tabby with patches on his back, the tom lumbered out of the nursery, avoiding the eyes of the other shadows. As the Dark Forest cats streamed out of the den, only one sound was emitted from the defeated clan_

"Forestkit! They took my Forestkit!" _an anguished cry came from the nursery._


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Blotchkit blinked open his eyes, blinded by the early morning light coming through the nursery wall. His mother, Mosspelt, was sleeping quietly, her tortoiseshell pelt rising and falling peacefully. She was curled around three kits, his siblings. Larkkit and Darkkit were lying next to her muzzle, making Mosspelt's whisker's twitch from their gentle breathes. They looked so sweet in their sleep, so innocent, so how could they be so mean in the day? Taunting Blotchkit for his abnormal markings, how he was so much larger than the rest.

But then there was Songkit, his favorite sister. Though she was shy around warriors and apprentices, Songkit was honest and fair, always comforting Blotchkit when his other siblings broke him. Mosspelt and his father Mintfur never payed attention to him, they named him hastily and left him alone

Blotchkit blinked, jerked from his thoughts by the movement of Larkkit. She yawned, her pink mouth holding thorn sharp teeth. Catching Blotchkit looking at her she hissed and prodded Darkkit awake, her gray-and-white fur sticking out at all angles. Her brother grumbled something and rolled over, trying to get away from whoever was waking him

"Wake up mouse-brain, the freak is watching us" she hissed in his ear, flashing Blotchkit a look full of hate.

Rolling his eyes Blotchkit climbed quietly out of his mini nest he made at the edge of the families nest and made his way to the nursery exit.

Carefully stepping over the other kit, Shellkit, he was about 5 paces away when his mother spoke "Where do you think you're going?" she never said his name; Blotchkit was always 'you' or 'him'.

"I want to see camp. I'm 2 moons old, I think it is time" he meowed, straightening himself up to make him seem older

"_I'll _decide that" Mosspelt meowed, narrowing her eyes slightly. Blotchkit sighed, he tried being brave, humble, nice, arrogant, but no matter what his mother hated him. Padding back to his nest Blotchkit tried to block out Larkkit and Darkkit openly laughing at him.

"I think it's time we get out too" another voice said, her head poking out from Mosspelt's belly fur

"You're too small" Mosspelt glanced to Blotchkit "Well, too young" she gently said, looking at her last kit, Songkit, with soft eyes.

"I want to go out to!" Darkkit proclaimed, his dark tabby flank still fluffy from kit down

"Yeah Mommy! We don't care what _you_ say! Me and Darkkit are going out no matter what!" Larkkit meowed rudely, and with that she pushed herself out of her mother's grasp and raced to the world outside, Darkkit hot on her heels.

Mosspelt purred, disregarding her daughter's lack of respect. "Mom, can we go out too?" Blotchkit piped up, wanting to show his mother that he was able to follow orders, like all the great warriors.

She flinched, probably at the word 'Mom'. Slowly looking to Blotchkit, he searched her gaze, not surprised to find dislike in them "Of course you can, your beautiful siblings are out there, why can't _you_? I'm not unfair" she meowed.

Did Blotchkit hear a snarl in her voice? It doesn't matter _I get to go out!_ He thought in his head "Come on Songkit! We get to see camp!" he meowed excitedly, racing out of the nursery.

Not watching where he was going, Blotchkit tripped over Shellkit, who was surprisingly still asleep. "Ow!" she squeaked her eye's leaping open, shock, but no pain, in them.

"Sorry! I wasn't looking where I was going, I was too excited that I finally get to see camp!" he meowed, trailing a little longer than he meant too.

She smiled "I remember my first time out of camp. Would you like me to show you around?" Shellkit was 2 moons older than Blotchkit and his siblings, and often told the litter about the world outside before they went to bed.

Blotchkit was about to answer when Songkit stumbled up, her little legs more unsure than her brother's sturdy ones "No! We want to explore on our own!" she answered, energy shinning in her eyes.

"Ok, but make sure you don't barge into the warrior's den, or your tail might be dinner tonight" she meowed, trying to make a joke, but no amusement was in her voice.

It was true, to a point. An older apprentice now, had once wandered into the warrior's den when she was just a kit. Waking up Mapleshade, the Dark Forest cat gave the little kit a scar, from head to tail. When the kits heard this story, Larkkit and Darkkit loved it, wanting to know every gruesome detail, while Songkit buried herself into Blotchkit.

"We won't" he meowed solemnly, and the prospect of seeing the camp was suddenly scary rather than fun. "Let's go Songkit." He mewed and cautiously padded out of the nursery and to his home.


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The sun blinded Blotchkit as he entered camp, the tall reeds around camp giving no defense against its glare. "It's so bright" Songkit complained, ducking her head against the harsh light. Blotchkit sneezed, the new smells overwhelming his untrained nose.

"Aw, are the little babies having trouble adjusting to the real world? Do they need to run back to Mommy?" A voice taunted. Blotchkit squinted his eyes, making out the outline of Darkkit, with the slightly small shape of Larkkit next to him.

"Yeah, run back to Mommy little kits. Maybe you can come out _next_ moon" Larkkit sneered, She was about to start saying something else when a series of sneezing interrupted her.

"Maybe _you_ should go back into the nursery, where the smells can't hurt you" Blotchkit mewed, smiling inwardly at the small victory.

"Shut it, fox dung" Larkkit snarled, using the phrase that Mosspelt told them never to use.

Songkit gasped, remembering her mother's warning "Larkkit, you know we aren't supposed to say that" she whispered, like someone might punish her.

"I can say whatever I want! I'm as big and strong as a warrior!" Larkkit boasted

"Yeah, we can say whatever we want! Like how Blotchkit is a dirty mange pelt!" Darkkit added on, using another forbidden phrase.

Blotchkit flinched at their words, something he tried not to do in front of his sister and brother, for it showed them that he was weak.

"Oh? Is the little baby afraid of words? Run back to your mommy you pile of mouse droppings, because you'll _never_ be a great warrior" Larkkit spat and padded away, tail high, with Darkkit right behind her.

"Don't listen to them; all they want to do is bring you down" Songkit murmered, pressing up against Blotchkit.

He took a deep breath, calming his nerves. "It's fine Songkit, let's just go explore." He meowed, walking in the opposite direction his siblings walked. They skimmed the edge of the reed wall, briefly glancing through them to see a small river encircling the camp. Coming across a den Blotchkit signaled Songkit to halt, just in case this was a warrior's den. Sniffing the air carefully, he caught a very stale scent of plants, some pungent, others bland. But there was no detectable cat scent, so it seemed safe.

"Let's go in, I think it's safe" Blotchkit whispered and cautiously padded into the tightly woven reed cave. Both nests seemed abandoned, trampled over and with crusty red patches on them. _Blood_ Blotchkit recognized the scent, for sometimes apprentice's came back drenched in it after training with a Dark Forest cats.

"Blotchkit, what's this?" Songkit mewed, her voice echoing slightly in the empty den. Blotchkit turned around, and found what Songkit was asking about. It was a green leaf, which was odd for it was leaf-fall, with small little spikes covering it.

"I don't know…." Blotchkit meowed, padding up to it. He sniffed the strange leaf, it smelled life the forest, a faint scent Blotchkit caught on his father.

"Do you think it's safe to eat?" Songkit asked, staring at it intently. Not waiting for answer she licked it tentatively, smacking her lips a little to make out the taste. "It's not too bad, a little bitter, but that's because it's dried up."

Then she took a small bite, chewing slowly, taking in the flavor. Swallowing, Blotchkit watched as his sister took another bite, pushing the leaf to him. "Try it" she mumbled through a mouthful of the strange leaf.

Not wanting to look like a mouse-heart, Blotchkit too a little bite, cautious of the different plant. It was bitter, and the little spikes made the leaf hard to swallow, but after you got past that, the leaf wasn't half bad. Right before Blotchkit was about to take another bite a voice startled him.

"What are you doing?" said the cat, her silhouette standing at the mouth of den. She padded up to them, and her features came more into focus, the dark gray tabby stripes of Willowshine. Blotchkit vaguely remembered her, she came and check up on Mosspelt every once and a while after she gave birth, feeding her strange things.

"N-nothing" Songkit stuttered out, her body visibly shaking from fear.

"It doesn't look like nothing; it looks like you were eating a raspberry leaf. You're lucky it wasn't a dangerous plant or you both would be regretting you were ever born." Willowshine gently scolded them, picking up the last bit of the raspberry leaf.

"Sorry Willowshine…." Blotchkit mumbled, looking down at his paws. How could they be so stupid to eat something unknown to them?

"It's okay little ones; it's your first time out of camp, so I'll let you off the hook this time." She purred, looking down at the two "Now let's go to the clearing so I can give you a proper tour." And with that Willowshine bounded out of the den, and Blotchkit only hesitated for a moment before following the young cat.

Stepping back into the blinding light Blotchkit followed the shadow Willowshine made and found himself trotting up to a hollowed beach copse.

"This is the elders den kits, where Dapplenose and Pouncetail stay" Willowshine informed them, waiting for Songkit to catch up to the two. "If you want to hear a good story, this is where you want to go."

As Willowshine showed the kits around camp, Blotchkit kept an eye out for Larkkit and Darkkit. He didn't want to be seen being shown around his own home.

"Blotchkit I'm getting bored, can we sneak away or something?" Songkit whispered, her tail swishing impatiently. He nodded, better to leave sooner rather than later, and started to slow his pace. Songkit started to hang back with him too, and soon Willowshine was walking alone, and the two kits went to hide in an opening next to a large stone.

"I think we lost her" Blotchkit said quietly, peaking around the side of the cave.

"Lost who exactly?" a deep voice meowed, making the two kits jump. A lark tabby tom with icy blue eyes padded out of a dark corner of the den, along with another tabby with an injured tail.

"Umm….Willow…Willowshine" Songkit stammered out, her body shaking even more than when Willowshine found them. These cats weren't living, which means they were part of the Dark Forest. Mosspelt told the kits to treat these cats with respect and never talk back to them.

The cat with icy blue eyes grimaced "You have good senses traitorous and weak cats like Willowshine. Remember, she may be able to heal but she is pathetic and mindless without the Dark Forest," Blotchkit was about to refute the tom, saying that she was smart enough to know what plant they were eating earlier, but then thought against it.

"Willowshine isn't dumb! She is smarter than any cat I know!" Songkit meowed defiantly, making Blotchkit flinch.

"Learn your place kit" the tom with the injured tail finally said, a snarl in his voice. "You're talking to your leader Hawkfrost, and you will treat him with respect, or else" he unsheathed his claws, and they shined in the hollow, even though they were transparent.

"Shredtail, it's okay, I like her spunk, she will be a strong warrior. You just need to learn respect" Hawkfrost meowed, looking to Shredtail then Songkit "Now run along, my deputy and I have things to discuss"

Blotchkit nodded and scurried out of the den, hearing Songkit following him. "Remind me not to step on Shredtail's paws" Songkit muttered to Blotchkit, and he laughed for the first time that day.


	4. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Blotchkit yawned, blinking open his green eyes to see another pare, blue ones, in front of him. Squeaking in surprise he jumped away, and they eyes collapsed, laughing a giggling.

"Songkit" he whined, shaking his pelt to smooth it out "Don't do that"

"It's so funny though" she purred, trying to hold back her laugh "Besides, you had to wake up anyways, Shellkit is going to become an apprentice soon"

He perked up "Really? She's already six moons?" it seemed like just yesterday when he and Songkit first explored camp. Two moons had passed since then, going by way too quickly for Blotchkit.

"Of course silly, we're four moons, and she is two older, which makes six. It's like you were born yesterday" she teased, eye's shinning in amusement.

"He acts like a new born too" Larkkit hissed, her eyes still closed from sleep "You both do, always getting excited about stupid things."

Songkit's

eye shown in hurt and she raced out of the den, unused to getting Larkkit's fury.

"You really had to say that to her" Blotchkit hissed to his sister "You know she is fragile, it's like you enjoy hurting people"

"Your weak if you don't" she snarled, opening her eyes just a sliver to glare at Blotchkit "You must install fear in your enemy or you'll never be on top"

"We're your own _family_ for Dark Forest sake! The enemy is Willowshine, and all the weak warriors who still believe in Starclan!" he meowed in rage. Larkkit could be so cruel so her own kin.

"It's called Deadpelt frog-brain" she hissed, closing her eyes again "And no matter what anyone says, you are _not_ my kin"

Stomach filling with anger, Blotchkit stormed out of the den, wanting to get away from the monster of his sister. Sighting Songkit sitting in the corner of camp he padded up to her, masking his face so she wouldn't see his rage.

"Go away" she whimpered, her voice laced with utter sadness.

"Don't listen to what Larkkit says; she has no heart or soul. Just remember that I'm always here for you" he mewed, sitting beside her. Gently licking her head, Blotchkit thought of how many times she wished someone would do this to him when Larkkit and Darkkit broke him.

"Its…it's just…sometimes it sounds like she really means it" Songkit sniffed, looking up to her brother "How do you deal with it every day?"

He sighed "I don't know Songkit, you'd think by now I would have given up" then he thought for a moment, "It's because I have you" he smiled, looking fondly down to his sister "You give me a reason to move on through the days, because you're the only person who cares about me. If I died, I would never forgive myself for leaving you"

She grinned sheepishly, and then frowned again, this time her face showing fear "And also you'd get scourged if you did die"

Blotchkit shivered, remembering what happened to the useless souls of dead cats. Many cats die all the time, and their soul goes to the Dar Forest, as it should. But there is only so many cats needed to be dead, so the unneeded souls are taken to Shadowclan camp, the Dark Forest strong hold. There the soul's energy is harnessed and given to another weaker soul. Some say it goes to Tigerstar, who is slowly fading away, some say the most loyal cat's take the energy, making them an unstoppable fighter. But most believe that it is given to the weak soul of Scourge, which appeared in the Dark Forest no more than a wisp some moons ago. And once he is back to full energy, he will truly show the forest what it means to be strong.

"Let all cats strong enough to kill their own enemy gather beneath the Highstone to hear what I have to say! Hawkfrost called, jerking Blotchkit from his thoughts.

"Come on, let's go watch the meeting!" Songkit meowed, scampering to the center of camp where the clan was gathering. Blotchkit trailed behind, trying to shake his dark thoughts from his mind. Catching sight at the freshly groomed Shellkit in the center of cats, Blotchkit squeezed to the front of the crowd, wanting to get a good view of his den mate becoming an apprentice.

"This kit has reached the age of six moons, and she is ready to learn the ways of the all mighty Dark Forest. Until you get your warrior name, you shall be known as Shellpaw. Robinwing, you are at the moment useless and a weak point in the clan, maybe if you train a future warrior you could amount to something" he meowed, snarling the last sentence.

Blotchkit glanced at Robinwing, a flash of sympathy for her taking him over for a moment. _Don't be a mouse-brain; she doesn't deserve pity_ he scolded himself. But he still felt sorry for her, and Blotchkit knew nothing could change that. No matter how hard he tried, Blotchkit couldn't adapt to the merciless ways of the Dark Forest.

The clan dispersed silently, not cheering for the newly made apprentice, which was normal. Whenever a kit got a weak mentor, nobody wanted to celebrate it. Still, Blotchkit padded up to the now Shellpaw "Congratulations" he murmured quietly, trying not to make it sound like he was happy for her.

"Thank you" she breathed, her sea green eyes meeting his for an instant before flicking away. "I should probably go talk to Robinwing" she meowed and padded away, leaving Blotchkit feeling lost.

Shellpaw had left long ago to go train with Robinwing, and the sun was now setting over the Riverclan camp. Blotchkit caught the moss ball Songkit threw over to him, still confused about his feelings for Shellpaw.

She was a nice she-cat, but just a friend, right? In his thoughts his eyes drifted to a dark corner of camp, movement catching his eyes. Two small cats were lurking there, gazing around camp to see if anyone was watching. _Larkkit and Darkkit_ Blotchkit realized, recognizing their body shapes.

"Blotchkit, are you going to throw it back?" Songkit called over, padding up to him as she said it/

"Shhh" Blotchkit whispered "Look over there, I think Larkkit and Darkkit are trying to sneak out of camp" he gestured to the two kits, the one that looked like Larkkit now slipping through the reeds that surrounded camp.

"Is that Larkkit and Darkkit?" Songkit asked, squinting her eyes to try and make out their pelts

"Yeah, I'm going to follow them, if I'm not back by moon high send out a patrol to find us" he whispered, crouching down. Silently padding around the outskirts of camp, He made to the place where Larkkit and Darkkit disappeared. Nodding to Songkit he stepped into the wall of reeds and into the unknown.


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The scents of Riverclan territory hit Blotchkit's nose, making him stagger back from the shock. So many smells, the sweet scent of lily flowers, the refreshing scent of grass. Then there was a musky, familiar, smell, one that didn't belong. _Larkkit and Darkkit went this way_ he thought, following their scents, which was stronger than any other. His siblings seemed to follow no particular path, swerving, turning back around, until Blotchkit thought it would take forever to find them.

Then suddenly a shriek split through the air, making Blotchkit jump. It was nearby, probably just over the hill in front of him. Racing towards the sound, Blotchkit reached the top of the hill and looked down, finding a terrible sight.

His siblings were crouching down on the ground, eyes filled with fear, as a red furred animal advanced on them. _A fox_ he remembered, the monster's look fitting the terrifying description Mosspelt told them when they were first born. He froze, looking down as the horrible scene unfolded in front of his eyes.

The fox lunged towards Darkkit, jaws snapping against his back. Darkkit screeched in pain, flailing desperately to get away from the monster. Larkkit shrieked in fear and turned around, racing away from her brother like a coward. Blotchkit watched his sister disappear, tail between her legs, and a thought exploded in his brain.

_Darkkit is going to die without some help!_ A voice screeched in his head, jerking Blotchkit back into action. Yowling at the top of his lungs Blotchkit raced towards the fox, throwing his body at the animal. Catching the fox by surprise it staggered back, dropping Darkkit. Without a second thought, Darkkit ran away, just like Larkkit, leaving his brother to fight the fox on his own.

Panic filling his body, Blotchkit unsheathed his tiny claws and flailed at the foxes face, trying to defend himself. But it was no use, the fox was fully grown and much stronger than a 4 moon old kit, and it easily pushed him off.

The fox's eye gleamed, probably happy to have such an easy meal. Blotchkit shrunk back in fear, trying to find any way to get out of the situation. A moment later pain exploded on his left flank, then on his face, as the fox landed blow after blow on him.

Blotchkit tried to turn and run, but the fox bit his tail, yanking the small kit to the ground. Blotchkit yowled, trying to catch any nearby cat's attention, if there were any close by. Black splotches started to form in his eyes, and Blotchkit started to feel weak.

_Well, good bye Songkit, I'm sorry couldn't grow up with you _he thought sadly, a single tear streaming down his face. Blotchkit closed his eyes, waiting for the killing blow. But it never came, and instead the fox's weight was suddenly lifted, as if something had plucked it up and into the sky. Blotchkit opened his eyes to find Hawkfrost pinning the fox, his muscles rippling as he destroyed the animal's neck.

"T-Thank you" Blotchkit stuttered, scrambling to his paws, the blood that he had left in his body rushing to his head.

"Wow Hawkfrost that was amazing!" another voice yowled, behind and above the two of them. Whipping around Blotchkit spotted Darkkit and Larkkit racing down the hill, their virtually unmarked pelts only slightly ruffled.

"Where you there the whole time?" Blotchkit asked, rage building up within him once again.

"Yeah, mouse-brain. We were watching you failing horrible against that fox. Call that fighting? More like flailing" Darkkit laughed, getting a rare snicker out of Larkkit. The only person that could usually make Larkkit laugh was herself.

"Why didn't you help me?" he hissed, anger giving him strength.

"Because we wanted to see a warrior take it down" Larkkit mewed, gazing up at Hawkfrost with starry eyes. "That was amazing Hawkfrost, you're so strong, I want to be like you some day" she said, sounding like she was in a trance.

_What has gotten into her?_ Blotchkit thought, noticing his sister's highly unusual behavior.

"Maybe one day you will" he purred, looking down at her with warm eyes, like he was looking at his own kit.

_Is the whole forest mad?_ Blotchkit thought, beginning to feel like something was wrong.

"Now," Hawkfrost mewed, his eyes returning back to its normal cold state "What were you three thinking, sneaking out of camp" Blotchkit opened his mouth to explain, but Darkkit spoke up first.

"It was all Blotchkit's fault! He _forced_ us to leave camp, saying he would _kill_ us if we didn't leave. Then he followed us and tried to look like a hero saving us from the fox!" Darkkit squeaked, looking up at the Riverclan leader with innocent eyes.

"Yeah, it's true Hawkfrost." Larkkit meowed, looking at Hawkfrost. His face showed untrust, and she added quietly "Don't you believe me?"

Hawkfrost face suddenly melted, showing something Blotchkit couldn't place. "Of course I do Larkkit" he purred, his eyes looking deeply into hers.

Blotchkit felt sick, from how his leader and his sister were acting and how his leader so readily believed his lie. "Hawkfrost it isn't true!" he protested, trying to fight for the truth.

"Blotchkit, don't try to lie to me. You put your brother and fragile sister in danger, have you no heart?" he hissed

"Hey, I'm not fragile!" Larkkit squeaked, but her eyes gleamed in satisfaction at her brother getting blamed for something he didn't do.

"Of course not, but your brother still shouldn't have done that. And for that Blotchkit, you must act as Darkkit's and Larkkit's servant until you are an apprentice. And if I hear about you making anymore death threats to your siblings, then I will add another moon to your punishment." He meowed forcefully, scaring Blotchkit so much that he knew that he wouldn't dream of disobeying his leader.

"Yes Hawkfrost" he murmured dejectedly, hanging his head to hide the rage in his eyes. _Gee, wonder how much Larkkit and Darkkit are going to use this punishment_ he thought to himself, dreading the next 2 moons.

"Come on you two, let's get you back to camp; you're probably pretty shaken up" Hawkfrost meowed, turning his back on Blotchkit and padding back in the direction of camp. Darkkit flashed him a smug smile and followed Hawkfrost, while Larkkit just floated after his brother, a dreamy look on her face.

"Maybe it would have been better if I died" he muttered under his breath, trailing behind the 3 up ahead. Finally the pain from his wounds came back to him and the weakness from earlier hit him like a wave.

_I wonder if they will let me take a nap before I have to serve them_ he thought, trudging back to his home


	6. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

It had been two moons since Blotchkit got his punishment, and the end of it couldn't have come a day sooner. His siblings constantly used their privilege, making his clean their nest, sending him several times to the fresh kill pile before he got a suitable piece for them.

But today he was becoming an apprentice, and the horrible punishment would be over. Excitement surged through him, the anticipation of starting to become a warrior almost made up for the last two moons of work.

"Hey Blotchkit!" Songkit called, racing over to him, her eyes gleaming "Want to go to the elder's den? Pouncetail promised to tell me how the clans came to be!" Blotchkit smiled. Songkit loved stories, and often asked him to make up some when the two kits couldn't visit the elders.

"Sure, let me just check in with Larkkit and Darkkit, you know just in case" he mewed, trying to remain positive. It always dampened Songkit's day when he managed his punishment, usually saying it wasn't fair and how he should have stood up for himself. Blotchkit usually shook his head, saying "It would have just made it worse"

"Okay Blotchkit, but hurry up okay?" she said, looking crest-fallen. Rubbing his muzzle against his sister's cheek reassuringly Blotchkit hurried to the nursery, where Larkkit and Darkkit usually hung out. Poking his head inside he meowed quietly "Anything you need me to do Masters?"

His siblings insisted on making Blotchkit call them "Master", humiliating the kit even more. "No, fox-brain, get out of our den, your stinking it up with your stench" Darkkit snarled, his eyes gleaming in hate. Dipping his head, Blotchkit raced over to the elder's den, relived to have the moment off.

"Ahh, Blotchkit so nice for you…." Pouncetail rasped, trailing off in mid-sentence as normal. "-to join us" Dapplenose finished, smiling fondly at him. He grinned back and padded over to where Songkit was laying down, her eyes on Pouncetail as she waited for her story.

"I was about to start the story when…" Pouncetail purred "-when Songkit told us you were coming. We're glad you could make it" Dapplenose said. _How annoying it must be to do this all the time_ Blotchkit thought. He had formed a high amount of respect for the elders, especially Dapplenose. They were so old, and hunting on their own must be so hard.

"Well let's get started" Pouncetail took a deep breathe, plunging into the story "Once upon a time a long time ago, there was constant battle and deaths between rogues, every cat fighting for themselves. Back in the clan's old home, the forest, cat's fought in the territory that suited them best. In Riverclan rivers for water fighting, on the moors of Windclan for fast attacks, Shadowclan marshes and shadow's for dark, messy battles, and Thunderclan tree's and…." Pouncetail explained, his mind suddenly wandering off

"-and Thunderclan tree's and undergrowth for close combat. Soon all the cat's battles came to the Gathering place there, Fourtrees. Suddenly all the souls from those who died in the earlier battles appeared, telling the living ones to stop" Dapplenose inhaled deeply, her frail body heaving from the work of storytelling

Pouncetail snapped back to reality "They said that there was no pride and honor in fighting alone, and that the cats must unite, to make the clans. Those who preferred the moors would live in the hills. Those who preferred the water would live near them, and so on. All they needed was to choose a…."

"-a leader for each clan" Dapplenose meowed, finally catching her breath. "Suddenly, a cat named Shadow, the most notorious of all the cats who fought in the shadows and marshes, stood. 'I, Shadow, will lead one of these clans. It shall be called Shadowclan and we will live in the marshes and shadows. Then 3 more cats stood, named River, Wind, and Thunder. I think you can guess what clans they formed" Dapplenose purred.

"The end!" Pouncetail said gleefully, startling the two kits.

"Can we hear another one? Please? Pleeeaaassseee?" she begged, looking from Pouncetail to Dapplenose hopefully.

"Of course young'un, how the story of-"Dapplenose was suddenly cut off with a hiss

"What are you two kits doing in here?" it said, and Mapleshade walked into the nursery, looking savagely at Songkit and Blotchkit.

"We're listening to stories!" Squeaked happily, obviously not detecting the anger in Mapleshade's eyes

"Stories are for kittypets, Deadpelts, Thunderclan cats" Mapleshade spat, insulting them harshly.

"We are loyal Riverclan cats!" Blotchkit hissed, standing up onto his stubbly legs. He barely made it up to Mapleshade's belly fur.

"Did you just try and say I was wrong?" she snarled, her eyes turned on to full fury.

"Yeah, and what are you going to do about it?" Blotchkit said, defiantly, a surge of extreme bravery filling him.

"You'll pay for that _kit_" she snarled, and suddenly her paw whipped out, landing such a hard blow to his right cheek that Blotchkit staggered back. The other cats in the den gasped, while Mapleshade looked down at the kit, triumph in her eyes.

Not letting her have the satisfaction of showing that she hurt him, Blotchkit barged out of the den, purposely bumping into Mapleshade, hard, so she lost her footing for a moment. He heard footfalls behind him and Blotchkit glanced back, seeing Songkit racing after him.

"That was so brave" she whispered quietly, glancing back to the elder's den to see Mapleshade stalking out.

"I just couldn't sit by while she insulted you" he murmured, shrugging modestly. But on the inside he was smiling, he had shown up a Dark Forest warrior.

"Maybe we should get Willowshine to get a look at your cheek" she meowed worriedly, licking up the blood that had started to run.

"No." he meowed, flinching from the stinging that got worse every time Songkit licked his wound. "If Mapleshade sees me, she will know she won. I'm fine, I don't need any herbs"

She looked at him, worry in her eyes. Sighing, she finally said "Okay, if you say so…."

Opening his mouth to tell her not to worry, Blotchkit got cut off by Hawkfrost "Let all cats strong enough to kill their own enemy gather here beneath the Highstone to hear what I have to say!" he called.

Blotchkit's heart skipped a beat _I'm going to become an apprentice!_ He thought, over joyed "Come one Songkit, let's go!" he said, racing to the center of camp where Larkkit and Darkkit were already sitting.

"What happened to your face?" Larkkit hissed in disgust, "Did you beg a warrior to mangle it so you would be prettier? Because I have to say, it is an improvement" she snickered, getting a laugh out of Darkkit too.

"Shut it Larkkit" Songkit growled. Her spirit had hardened over the moons, and she wasn't afraid to stand up to her siblings.

"Cats of Riverclan, these kits have reached 6 moons, and they are ready to become apprentices. Until they get their warrior names, they shall be called Larkpaw, Darkpaw, Songpaw, and Blotchpaw"

Glancing to Mosspelt and Mintfur, he saw them beaming in pride, but they were only looking at Songpaw, Larkpaw, and Darkpaw. _Whatever, if they can't be proud of me, their lost_ he thought, rolling his eyes.

"Darkpaw, your mentor will be the great Sparrowfeather of the Dark Forest, learn well from him." Darkpaw smiled in pride and sauntered over to his new mentor, as if he was showing off.

"Larkpaw, your mentor will be me. I have seen greatness in you and I want to be the one to bring it out of you" Larkpaw jumped up in happiness and looked at Hawkfrost like he was the best cat in the forest.

"Songpaw, your mentor will be Shredtail, he is a strong Dark Forest warrior, and I expect that you will show respect to him" Songpaw groaned quietly. Remembering the day they met Shredtail, Blotchpaw understood why she wasn't happy about him. He was one of her least favorite cats, besides Larkpaw and Darkpaw.

"And Blotchpaw, your mentor will be Mapleshade. She is a loyal, strong Dark Forest warrior that enforces respect and obedience. If anyone can teach you to be a tolerable warrior, Mapleshade can" Blotchpaw stood there in horror, his gaze slowly turning to Mapleshade.

There was dark satisfaction in her eyes.

* * *

**So how do you guys like it? Its my first fanfiction, so feel free tell me anything I need to fix!**


	7. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_Oh no, not her, please_ Blotchpaw thought bleakly, looking at his new mentor. Straightening himself up, Blotchpaw padded over to Mapleshade, making himself keep eye contact with her. Stopping a tail length away from his new mentor, Blotchpaw waited for her to speak, never taking his eyes away from hers. After what seemed like an eternity she finally spoke "You will treat me with respect. You will follow my every order, and you will not question me. Understand?"

"And what if I don't?" he challenged, not fazed by the amount of authority in her voice.

"Then you will have much more to worry about than your cheek" she hissed. "Now, do you understand, or do you need me to repeat my conditions?"

"I understand" he meowed through gritted teeth, hating that he was at the mercy of her. She was a seasoned warrior, and with one attack she could take him down, and probably make him stay down.

"Good. Now stand still, I need to asses you" she meowed and started to circle him, her eyes ranking every inch of his pelt. Blotchpaw felt naked, vulnerable, everything out in the open. She finally seemed to be finished looking at him, but that wasn't the end. She ran her paws down his left flank, feeling his stomach and muscles. She bit down on his tail, hard, making Blotchpaw cry out a little.

"What does this have to do with my training again?" he hissed as Mapleshade ripped a clump of his fur off of the young cat's body.

Mapleshade didn't answer; instead she stared contently at the hair for several long moments. Growing impatient Blotchpaw coughed loudly, trying to get her attention. Again she didn't answer, and anger started to take over him.

"Hey!" he snarled at Mapleshade "Are you just going to sit there or are you going to do something useful?" Finally Mapleshade looked up, a slight smirk on her face.

"I was doing something useful, I was waiting for you to break. I was waiting for you to get so impatient that you threw respect away and treated me as one of your siblings."

"So you were tricking me?" Blotchpaw asked, enraged "You thought it would be funny to waste a whole day trying to get me angry, just so you could punish me and waste _another _day? Is your brain full of frog-dung?" he snarled, his hackles rising.

"No, I didn't trick you, I wanted to see how long you could hold your patience, I was never going to punish you. Until, of course, that little speech" she snickered "Maybe cleaning out all the dens in the camp will teach you not to act rationally. We will start our _real_ training tomorrow" and with that Mapleshade walked back into the warrior's den.

Blotchpaw stayed where he was, trembling in anger at his mentor, at himself, at his scratch mark on his cheek that still stung. Stalking to the old medicine den, Blotchpaw wondered if the mentor before the Beginning was this harsh, when the warrior code was still alive.

* * *

_That's the last nest_ Blotchpaw thought in relief, putting down the last of the moss. It had been early in the day when Blotchpaw started, and now the moon was rising above the now full Riverclan camp. At first Blotchpaw tried to trick Mapleshade by just putting fresh moss on top of the old, but that plan quickly died.

"Blotchpaw!" she had called sweetly, making his heart leap into his throat. Quickly leaving the apprentice's den and going to the elders, Blotchpaw had found Mapleshade standing over a nest, the layer of fresh moss torn off, laying in a heap in a corner of the den. "You can't trick me that easily" she purred, flicking her tail to the nest. "Try to do it right"

Leaving the warrior's den, Blotchpaw was met with laughter and teasing, "Were you too scared to leave camp today? Did Mapleshade take pity on you and let you stay in the safety of camp?" Larkpaw laughed.

Blotchpaw was about to refute her, but then Mapleshade padded up behind them, flashing Blotchpaw a quieting look.

"He probably didn't want to run into another fox" Darkpaw teased, snickering "It would have torn him apart, just like last time. Mapleshade will never be able to teach you to fight, so it's probably best for you to just clean nests everyday"

"Do you doubt my abilities?" Mapleshade said, startling his siblings "Do you think I can't train your brother, who happens to be one of the strongest kits I have ever seen? Do you think you could endure what I am going to put him through tomorrow?" she challenged, looking down at Larkpaw and Darkpaw.

Instead of being scared, Larkpaw just laughed "How bad can training be? Hawkfrost taught me some battle moves today, and look what I got" she boasted, turning her pelt to see a light scratch on her side.

"Blotchpaw, come here" Mapleshade ordered, and he scrambled over to her, surprised that Mapleshade was standing up for him. "Fluff up your pelt; I need to show your sister something.

Nodding, he spiked up his fur until it was sticking straight out. Feeling Mapleshade rummaging through his fur, her paw ran over one of the scars the fox left. "Turn so your sister can see this mark" she barked, and Mapleshade rested her eyes on Larkpaw, watching her for a reaction.

Blotchpaw turned so Larkpaw could see his parted hairs, and her eyes lit up in surprise. "_That_ is from when Blotchpaw was saving your pelt from that fox. A thistle bush could have given you're your cut, while a warrior would have a hard time giving Blotchpaw his. So before you go insulting someone, at least know their background."

Larkpaw hissed, she always hated being shown up, while Darkpaw cowered in fear, not from Blotchpaw's scratch, but how ferocious Mapleshade looked. "Run along now my darlings, your sweet sweet brother has made you your nests, because obviously your too much of a frog-brain to make one yourself" she crooned, looking at them with a mock mother's love.

"Don't think this is the end" Larkpaw snarled and she stalked off, Darkpaw scurrying after her, not wanting to be alone with the scary Dark Forest warrior.

"Why did you do that?" Blotchpaw asked, his eyes still on his siblings walking away.

"Because they needed to know that they were wrong. Don't under estimate yourself Blotchpaw, you could amount to something." Mapleshade caught him smile "This doesn't mean I like you, I think you are a disrespectful piece of frog-dung that doesn't know anything without me" she hissed, and she stalked away to the camp exit.

Still slightly smiling, Blotchpaw made his way to the fresh kill pile in front of the queen's den. Only members of the nursery were allowed to eat this food, anyone older was expected to catch their own food. But Mapleshade didn't teach him how to hunt, so Blotchpaw decided he could eat from it one last time.

"I wouldn't do that" a muffled voice purred from behind Blotchpaw, startling him. Turning around he saw it was only Shellpaw, two squirrels in her mouth.

Blotchpaw smiled, shrugging "I need food, and Mapleshade didn't tell me how to get my own."

"You can have one of my catches, this is too much for me to eat" she offered, her eyes shining in pride for how much she caught.

"You'd do that?" Blotchpaw asked hopefully, hoping that his old denmate wasn't messing with him.

"Of course Blotchpaw, I have a heart, unlike the Dark Forest" she mewed, letting the small insult slip out.

Blotchpaw gasped at her courage, no one ever insulted the Dark Forest, they were the rulers of the forest, and everyone was told they should be grateful that they ruled.

"Please don't tell anyone I said that" she mewed, desperation in her voice

"Of course not Shellpaw, I would never betray you, I care about you too much." he whispered, instantly feeling embarrassed. Where did that come from? "As a sister I mean" he quickly said, covering up the awkward meaning with a better one.

She giggled "Come on, let's go eat in the center of camp, where we can see the sky" she mewed and bounded over to the clearing near the Highstone. Blotchpaw followed, his ears still burning from his slip up.

Lying down next to Shellpaw, Blotchpaw looked up at the sky "Wow…" he breathed. Usually the sky was murky from dark cloud over hanging everything, but tonight you could see a sliver of the moon, casting a dim light down on everything.

"Maybe one day we will be able to see stars" Shellpaw murmured, talking about small balls of light that used to hang out in the sky. Pouncetail told him that before The Beginning, each star used to represent a Starclan warrior. But after they lost to the Dark Forest, all the stars slowly disappeared, leaving only the moon, which was rarely ever shown.

"Maybe…" he agreed, feeling Shellpaw shiver as a cold breeze swept over the two. Acting upon instinct Blotchpaw pushed up against her, just like he would have with Songpaw. She flinched, surprised by his gesture, and Blotchpaw quickly drew away.

"Sorry" he mumbled, his ear yet again burning as he stared down at his paws

"No, it's okay, I just wasn't ready for that" she meowed, a slight purr in her voice.

He looked up and smiled, his eyes meeting hers, and his heart suddenly seemed to grow. He opened his mouth, about to say what he was feeling, when footsteps came from the camp entrance. Looking towards it, Blotchpaw found Songpaw staring at them, her eyes full of horror.


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Guilt. That's the first thing Blotchpaw felt when he saw the look on Songpaw's face. They were just made apprentices today, she probably just had the worst day of her life, and here he was making moony eyes at his former denmate, instead of waiting to support his sister.

"Songpaw" he started, rising to his paws. But his sister was already racing to the apprentice's den, her head bowed to hide the tears that were certainly welling up in her eyes.

"I have to go comfort her" he muttered to Shellpaw, not even glancing at her as he hurried to where Songpaw disappeared. Entering the den Blotchpaw found Songpaw curled up in one of the new nests he made, her body shaving from the tears.

"Songpaw…I'm so sorry…I should have…"He fumbled with his words, unsure on how to tell her how horrible he felt.

"W….why" she stuttered, curling up tighter as if to block out the outside world.

"We were just…just eating together; I was waiting for you to come back…" Blotchpaw started, making up a lie, and then decided against it.

"Why…why…." She continued, feebly lifting her head to look at her brother. Her eyes were streaming with tears, their usually happy fire put out by the waves of sadness

Blotchpaw took a sharp breathe, seeing the sadness on her face hit him like a hard blow to his heart. Walking up to his sister, Blotchpaw easily curled around her, his massive body warming her little one.

She shuttered, but didn't push him away. Slowly Songpaw feel asleep, her breathe evening, only disturbed by small hiccups every now and then. Blotchpaw looked down at her, gently pawing away the tears that were left to dry on her face.

He shifted over and laid the other way from Songpaw, so that their pelts were still touching but he wasn't curled around her. Blotchpaw rested his head on his paws and closed his eyes, listening to the sounds of the river outside camp.

_I'm sorry Songpaw, I know what it feels like to be abandoned, and I promise I won't do that to you_ Blotchpaw swore to himself, before drifting off to sleep

-0o0-0o0-0o0-

Blotchpaw opened his eyes, a soft sunlight waking him from his deep sleep. But instead of in his nest, Blotchpaw found himself in a flat plain, devoid of anything living. He looked up, and found a bright, large moon, even more stunning than Blotchpaw imagined the real moon looked like.

_I must be dreaming, no place has a moon like this_ he realized. Looking around the plain, Blotchpaw tried to find someone to talk to, but there was nothing to see. The field was empty, just the grass and mist coming towards him in a great mass. He swept his gaze of the mist, disregarding it for there was always mist in the slimy territory of Riverclan.

Suddenly the wind picked up, blowing his fur in different directions as the mist enveloped him, blinding his view of the nothing. "Forestkit!" a voice shrieked, sounding vaguely familiar to Blotchpaw, "They took my Forestkit!" the cat, it sounded like a she-cat, started to yell the name over and over again, sounding more desperate every call.

Blotchpaw raced towards the voice, wanting to comfort the cat, tell her everything was okay. But he could never reach her, and whenever he thought he got close, the voice got farther. "Where are you!" he yowled in the mist, hoping the cat would answer.

-0o0-0o0-0o0-

"Blotchpaw, Blotchpaw wake up" a voice meowed, shaking him towards consciousness. Blotchpaw opened his eyes, gasping form the horrible dream. Shellpaw was standing over him; delight in her eyes as he woke up. Real sunlight poured out of the mouth of the den, making Shellpaw nothing more than a silhouette

"You were fidgeting and whimpering in your sleep, like you were having a bad dream. Are you okay?" she asked, her sweet scent pouring into his nose.

He smiled back, a warm feeling calming his scared mind. But then the memories from last night flooded back to him, and Blotchpaw frowned again, pushing down the warmth. He had to be there for Songpaw, and this she-cat was distracting him from doing that.

"I'm fine" he muttered, flicking his eyes away from her as to avoid the disappointment in her eyes. "I have to go see Mapleshade, we have to train" and he pushed out of the den, a thorn stabbing his heart as he left Shellpaw standing their dejectedly.

Seeing Shredtail and his mentor talking, Blotchpaw sat under the shade of the Highstone, scanning the camp for Songpaw. _There!_ She was padding back into camp from the dirt tunnel, her eyes flicking cautiously around camp.

"Songpaw!" he called, bounding up to his sister, "Are you okay?" he asked gently

She nodded timidly, her eyes trained on Shredtail as he talked, not even glancing Blotchpaw's way.

He sighed, taking the motion that she was still upset with him. "Songpaw, I'm really sorry, I-" before he could explain, Mapleshade had stopped talking to Shredtail and padded up to them.

"Good news, you get to train today, and Songpaw will be coming with us. Bad news, she knows more than you, so I expect you to learn fast" she meowed briskly

"Yes Mapleshade" Blotchpaw said, dipping his head. "Let's go Songpaw, they'll be waiting" he whispered, nodding his head to the mentors.

She quickly padded to the camp exit, not even acknowledging that he said anything. Growing impatient, Blotchpaw growled under his breathe and followed, always staying behind Songpaw so he didn't have to confront her on another attempt to make peace, which would fail.

Stepping out of camp for the first time in two moons, Blotchpaw was astonished by the change that took place in the territory. The reeds had withered to brown feeble plants; the grass underfoot was more like muck, making it hard for Blotchpaw to lift his feet. And the worst part was the river, which had been gleaming on his expedition to find Larkkit and Darkkit, was now brown sludge, its thick contents pushing along the shore.

Blotchpaw stood outside camp with his jaw hanging slightly open from the change. What had happened here? Why had the beauty of Riverclan been taken away in a short two moons?

"_It's the Dark Forest, their presence kills the beauty_"a quiet voice hissed, scaring Blotchpaw.

Mapleshade growled, and Shredtail's hackles were up, looking the way the whisper came. Blotchpaw turned just in time to see a slender silver and white she-cat disappearing through the withered reeds. She was translucent like Mapleshade and Shredtail, but something about her made it seem she was good.

"How did Ivypool get out of the battle center?" Mapleshade snapped, turning to Shredtail.

"The same way Mistystar got out last moon, the guard wasn't paying attention" Shredtail hissed, "Mallownose is about to be sorry he was ever born"

Songpaw squeaked and shrunk back, trembling violently as if Shredtail was going to beat her. Blotchpaw just rolled his eyes and trudged past her as the Dark Forest warriors padded away, probably to the place they called the 'battle center'. Songpaw needed to grow up, her fears were getting annoying.

Soon the cats arrived at a large den, woven out of reeds. But these weren't dead or withering like the ones around the territory, even though they had been picked long ago. These reeds were green, with strong stems, like they were still living, feeding off the ground.

And there was Mallownose, lying down, with his eyes closed, as a couple cats lay around him. Ivypool was there, talking quickly, but it seemed no one was listening.

Then one of them, a dark tabby tom, spotted them and cried out. The rest of the glowing figures saw them and leapt to their paws, running into the huge den.

"Who were those cats? Are they from the Dark Forest?" Blotchpaw asked, watching in wonder as the last one of them, and unusually spotted she-cat, ran into the den.

"They are from Starclan, we use them to help battle train apprentices" Shredtail growled, stalking towards still sleeping Mallownose.

"Mallownose" he snarled when he was a tail length from the warrior's face. "Wake up you good-for-nothing fool" The warrior sleepily blinked open his eyes, seeing the paws of Shredtail in front of him.

That was the last thing Mallownose ever saw as Shredtail's claws embedded into his eye.

* * *

**Sorry if this chapter wasn't as good as the others, I was having a major writer's block throughout the whole thing. But anyways, read and review!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**Wow, already on my 8****th**** chapter! Sadly only one review though, so I don't know what to change, or what you guys like, so I'll try my best to keep it interesting**

* * *

"What are you doing mouse-brain? Unsheathe your claws; this is battle training, not a play fight!" Mapleshade hissed, landing a hard blow to Blotchpaw's head.

"Yes, battle _training_" Blotchpaw emphasized, ignoring the pain from the hard attack "There is no need to hurt Larkpaw when we are learning this new move"

_Not we, her_ he thought in his head, glancing over to Larkpaw, who was sitting next to Hawkfrost, a sly smile on her face as she watched him get scolded. Blotchpaw's sister learned at an unbearably slow pace, never taking suggestions from Mapleshade or him. It was only her mentor Hawkfrost she listened to, and he never pointed out what she did wrong; only what she did right.

"You must learn how to use your claws to go along with your attacks. The seasonally battle is coming up, and I don't want to be embarrassed because my apprentice doesn't know how to use his own claws." She meowed, reminding Blotchpaw of the reason he needed to know battle moves at all.

Since all the clans were united by the Dark Forest, there was no need to battle over land or food, all the territories shared and no clan went hungry. But the Dark Forest still hungered for battle, so every season they pinned clan against clan too see who was the best, and whoever won got special training, secrets that weren't shared with the living.

"Yes Mapleshade" he grumbled, sliding out his claws as he stalked back to the center of the training beach. It was an extended bar of sand in the heart of RiverClan territory, making it safe for untrained apprentices to learn new moves.

Larkpaw snickered and bounded over to him "Are you ready to fight like a real warrior, or is it too hard for you?" she teased, unsheathing her own, long claws.

"At least I'm not the one who has trouble learning simple moves" he shot back, lashing his tail in anger. Blotchpaw had tried to be nice to his sister, but now all he wanted to do is show her what he could really do.

"Now, Blotchpaw, try the move on Larkpaw, let's see if you can do it right now" Hawkfrost ordered, giving the young apprentice a slight satisfaction that he got to show everyone he could fight well without and with claws.

_Lunge under, unbalance, pounce, destroy_ he thought in his mind, imagining his claws ripping into Larkpaw's striped gray pelt.

"When you're ready" Mapleshade growled impatiently, jolting Blotchpaw out of his thoughts. Without hesitation he lunged under Larkpaw, roughly pushing Larkpaw's legs out from under her. She tried to land on him, but Blotchpaw was too quick.

Turning on his tail, Blotchpaw pinpointed Larkpaw's back and jumped, digging his claws deep into her spine. Ripping his paws through her flesh, Blotchpaw took great satisfaction in Larkpaw's tortured screams.

"Blotchpaw that is enough!" Hawkfrost yowled, bowling him over off his apprentice. Acting upon instinct, Blotchpaw rolled with the impact and pushed off his leader when gravity came his way. Jumping away, Blotchpaw took a breathe after deep breathe, his senses slowly coming back to him.

Larkpaw lay on the ground, trembling as her back bleed freely, creating a small pool under her. Fear was in her eyes as she looked at Hawkfrost, who was across the hollow, lying on the ground. His chest was rising and falling quickly; as he tried to regain his breathe.

"Very nice Blotchpaw" Mapleshade smiled, padding up next to him, looking at the two cats that he took down. "I think you're ready for the next step in battle training. Come with me"

Blotchpaw nodded and followed, not taking a second look at his sister and leader.

-0o0-0o0-0o0-

"Welcome to the Battle Center Blotchpaw" Mapleshade purred, stopping at the entrance of the large reed den Blotchpaw had seen a half-moon ago, when Mallownose died. His body wasn't even brought to camp; Shredtail just put it in the river and told no one about it. His disappearance went unnoticed, or if cats did notice, they didn't bring it up.

"This will be your next step in training. As far as I know, you're the only apprentice to get this far, besides Troutpaw and Rainpaw" Of course the older apprentices got here before him, but not Shellpaw?

"Shellpaw hasn't been here yet?" he asked, confused, since she was a full moon older than him.

"She doesn't have a Dark Forest mentor, only we can take our or other apprentices here" she purred. Flicking her tail forwards Mapleshade walked into the Battle Center, getting swallowed up by the darkness.

Cautiously padding forwards, Blotchpaw felt a shiver go down his spine as the black void of the den took him in, leaving behind the bright world. Sniffing the air, Blotchpaw couldn't smell any real scent out of the ordinary, but he also scented depression, desperation of cats that have given up. No, not cats, it was more like….spirits.

_More Dark Forest cats?_ Blotchpaw thought to himself, and then corrected himself. These spirits, they seemed purer, better.

"Light it up Crookedstar, or I'll hurt the young cat" Mapleshade hissed, seemingly talking to no one in particular.

Suddenly there was a flash of blinding light and the den was lit as bright as the daytime on the brightest days in RiverClan. In front of him were six cats, the same ones he had seen the day Mallownose died. There was one that looked like a small sun, his broken jaw barely visible from the shine.

Next to him were two cats, sitting so close to each other they could have been family. But they looked nothing the same, one was a blue-gray she cat while the other had a golden pelt with odd spots everywhere. Not too far away there were two young cats crouching down in anger, their tails lashing in unison as they gazed at Mapleshade.

_Ivypool_ he remembered disturbed to see her in such anger. The last time Blotchpaw had seen her she was cool and calm, even when they had found all the cats outside their den. The tom next to her was a dark tabby tom, resembling Tigerstar. But before Blotchpaw could look at the last cat, Mapleshade spoke.

"Thank you Crookedstar" she meowed, no sign of politeness in her voice. "For your next step in battle training Blotchpaw, you will fight one of these Starclan cats. Take a good look at each of them, try to see who would be the best match for you" Mapleshade ordered

Already seeing the first five, Blotchpaw moved his gaze to the last cat, gasping from the look of his pelt. _Why is Tigerstar here?_ He thought, but then look a closer look. This cat was small than Tigerstar, and his claws weren't as long. Even the tom next to Ivypool didn't look as much as the Dark Forest leader as this cat did.

"As yes, that is Brambleclaw, son of Tigerstar. He betrayed out esteemed leader many times, and thus Tigerstar sent him away, never wanting to see him again." Mapleshade explained

_Brambleclaw….Brambleclaw…that sounds familiar…._Blotchpaw racked his brain, catching hold of a faint memory. Digging into, Blotchpaw dug it out, and when it was finally free, a whirlwind of other memories streamed out.

* * *

**Sorry if this chapter was boring, it was more of a filler chapter, next one will be more exciting! Please read and review, it will be much appreciated!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**OMG sorry for taking so long writing this chapter! I've been super busy and the story just slipped from my mind! I'll try from now on to post a new chapter at least every week!**

**Madison: Thank you so much for reviewing on each chapter! You were the reason I remembered this story! *give blotchpaw shirt* here is the chapter you asked for! 3**

**Foxstar: sorry for a late reply! Thanks for being my first review, I was so hapy when I saw it xD**

_Images of battles flashed before Blotchpaw's eyes, Dark Forest warriors fighting against living cats. Blotchpaw was in some sort of den, though it looked nothing like the ones in Riverclan._

"_ThunderClan, stay strong!" a tom yowled, and Blotchpaw caught a glimpse of fiery red fur that the voice came from._

_Yowls of agreement come thinly spread throughout the hollow, though most of them were uncertain. Trying to pick out individual pelts, Blotchpaw saw a young gray she-cat with a fluffy pelt trying to fend off three Dark Forest warriors._

Dovewing _the name came as easily to him as the name of his clan mates, though he had never seen this cat in his life. Or so Blotchpaw thought. _

_He spotted two young cats, apprentices like himself, fighting side-by-side _Molepaw and Cherrypaw _he remembered, knowing that the siblings would always fight together._

_There was a bright flash, and suddenly the fighting stopped, any many cats that were alive before lay dead on the ground. A large gray tom stood before him, one Blotchpaw easily recognized, Thistleclaw._

"You're coming with me" _he said gruffly, picking up three smaller kits and hoisting Blotchpaw over his back. Looking over his back, Blotchpaw saw two other kits, ones that looked very much like himself. _Those are my sisters, Lilykit and Seedkit _he realized, and suddenly Blotchpaw knew what this memory was._

_But before he could sort through this realization, a familiar cry rang in his ears at Thistleclaw carried him out of camp_

"Forestkit! They took my Forestkit!" _said the anguished cry, the same one he had heard in his dream._

-0o0-0o0-0o0-

Blotchpaw came back to the present, his pelt burning and chest heaving. _Where am I? What just happened?_ He thought to himself, looking around slowly. These trees were familiar; they were Riverclan trees, the ones near the training center. Breathing in deeply, Blotchpaw sat down, sorting through the memory he just experienced. It was all coming back him now, as if a plug holing up his memories was finally taken out. It was no wonder his sisters and brother didn't look anything like him, or that his parents hated him, it was because they weren't really his family. ThunderClan cats were his family, the place he was born. And Blotchpaw's real name wasn't Blotchpaw; it was Forestkit, or now Forestpaw.

"I'm a ThunderClan cat…." he murmured, his body hollow with shock. He was kin with the most hated, traitorous clan in the whole forest, and all the Riverclan warriors knew it. "That's why they hate me…that's why they all shoot me dirty looks…that's why I have a horrible life!" he snarled, anger now replacing the shock.

"What was that?" a voice called, startling Blotchpaw. Instinctively crouching down, the young apprentice prowled forwards, trying to get a good look inside the reeds that surrounded the training center and where the voice came from.

"Oh it was probably just a warrior on patrol, nothing to worry about" said a younger, soothing voice. Peeking into the clearing, Blotchpaw saw Hawkfrost standing up, his fur bristling, with Larkpaw lying down below him, her eyes shining.

Slowly Hawkfrost nodded and laid down next to his sis- fellow apprentice. But it wasn't at a respectful distance, in fact Hawkfrost lay so close to Larkpaw their pelts were pressed up against each other, and their tail intertwined immediately.

A pang of sickness shot through Blotchpaw, seeing his young former sister being like that with a warrior well over three times her age. Hawkfrost started to slowly lick the apprentice's head, advancing down her head and to her back, making her shiver.

Before Blotchpaw's mouse he ate earlier could make a reappearance, he dashed away from the horrid scene. _I just found out I am from the most awful clan in the forest, and now my old sister it in love with a cat who is decades older than her_ he cried in his head, all the shocking information too much for him.

Closing his eyes, Blotchpaw raced through the territory, wanting to get away from all the memories. It was too much, too much for his young mind. If only he could talk to someone, but Songpaw hated him and Shellpaw wouldn't help his relationship with her.

"Blotchpaw, watch out!" a cat yelled, cutting though his distress in the mind. His eyes flying open, Blotchpaw saw he was making a beeline for Shellpaw, he mouth full with fish she had just caught. Skidding to a stop, Blotchpaw came face to face with Shellpaw, her blue eyes looking into his.

"Hey" she meowed coolly, stepping away from the tom "Why were you running with your eyes closed?" her voice was accusing and angry, though it seemed a little fake.

Blotchpaw felt his heart snap in half, the pretty she-cat he had liked so much now hated him because of how he was treating her, paying no attention to her, giving her short answers if she ever asked him a question. Of course it was all so he could be with Songpaw, he didn't want to treat Shellpaw like this, but there was no way he could tell her that.

"I…I just had a hard day" he muttered, shifting his paws uncomfortably. Blotchpaw's feelings for Shellpaw had not changed, even though he wished so dearly they would. And now, being with her alone, Blotchpaw's heart was swelling and all he wanted to do was tell her how he really felt.

"Imagine being in my shoes, but of course, you wouldn't care." She said coldly, narrowing at him.

"I do care!" Blotchpaw blurted out, and suddenly all the words he had wanted to say tumbled out. "Shellpaw I care more than you wouldn't believe! Every time I blow you off, or ignore you, breaks my heart! I hate doing this to you! But I can't show Songpaw I care about anyone else but, or she will feel abandoned! Shellpaw, I think you're so great, your pretty, smart, brave, the best hunter I have ever met, but Songpaw needs me!" he said, looking deeply into her eyes as her sweet scent filled him.

Instantly Shellpaw's cold mask melted into one filled with happiness. "You mean that? You were just trying to help your sister? You don't hate me?" she asked

"I could never hate you Shellpaw, not in a million moons" he purred, licking her cheek quickly.

Shellpaw's eyes seemed to have melted, relief showing all throughout her body as her muscles relaxed and a smile spread across her face.

"At least now one thing is right in my life" he breathed, still weighed down by all the events today.

"What do you mean?" Shellpaw asked, now worried. So Blotchpaw told her everything, from all his memories to Larkpaw and Hawkfrost's display in the training center.

"Oh Blotchpaw, I'm so sorry" Shellpaw whispered, pressing reassuringly against him.

"It's not your fault, it's the Dark Forest's" he growled, not caring if that sounded like treason. He knew the Dark Forest did this to him, and now all his respect for them melted into nothing but the hunger for revenge.

"I know…" she murmured "Robinwing and I have been talking, and we believe that the Dark Forest should be taken down. She has told be stories of what the lake was like before the Dark Forest ruled, and it seemed to much better than now…the grass was green, the sun always showed, it was all better…"

Blotchpaw nodded, remembering how the territory changed from beautiful to terrible in a matter of 2 moons.

"But she says all the old clan cats are too afraid to up rise, only the young warriors are willing too, but there isn't enough of them to actually do any good." She said "We need a leader, someone who truly believes that we could make a difference and knows how he will do it"

"Well I hope we find one soon, because I would love to join that cause" he snarled, digging his claws into the murky ground. "So I guess you and Robinwing have been talking about this for a while huh?" he said, trying to talk away his anger.

"Ever since Mallownose died. I asked her about it the day after he disappeared, and she told me how she felt about the Dark Forest. Slowly I came to agree with her, realizing how awful the Dark Forest truly is. I was going to tell you, but I thought you wouldn't care…" she trailed off, sighing quietly.

"Don't worry Shellpaw, I promise I will always show that I care for now on" he meowed, feeling his anger slowly fade away. "I think we should tell Songpaw about this, she needs to know that she isn't my real sister anymore"

"Of course, take some of my fish too, so you have a reason of not being with Mapleshade" Shellpaw meowed, pushing 2 of the largest fish to him.

"Thank you Shellpaw" he smiled, picking up the prey. Walking back to camp, Blotchpaw was so happy he could finally be himself with Shellpaw.

**So I've noticed that my chapters are kind of short compared to other fanfictions, so after this chapter I will work REALLY to make them longer. Its just a lot happened in this chapter and I didn't want to overwhelm everyone xD anyways, read and review!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

**I felt bad about not writing so long, so Im writing another chapter for you guys xD **

**Silverforest: Thanks so much! That really means a lot to me, and for that *throws a Blotchpaw t-shirt* use it well **

**Lilysplash: Thanks for the review! It's good to know that my story isn't horrible xD *throws free Shellpaw hug ticket***

Blotchpaw scanned the Riverclan camp looking for the familiar tortoiseshell pelt of Songpaw. "Do you see her?" he muttered through the fish in his mouth.

"No, maybe we should look in our den?" Shellpaw suggested her eye's also surveying the camp. Blotchpaw found himself distracted by a stray tuft of hair sticking up on her forehead. _Stop drooling and find Songpaw!_ He scolded himself, shaking his head as if to clear it.

Quickly walking to the apprentice's den, Blotchpaw stopped to drop of the two fish Shellpaw caught in the fresh kill pile.

"Blotchpaw, what are you doing here without Mapleshade?" a harsh voice called. Whipping around, Blotchpaw saw Shredtail stalking towards him, the deputy's eyes lit with an angry fire.

"She told me to go hunting, and I came back to see if Songpaw could come with us" Blotchpaw lied, looking defiantly at Songpaw's mentor.

"I think you spend too much time with her. She doesn't need you anymore Blotchpaw, stop trying to get her to follow you around like she did as a kit." Shredtail snarled "I'm her mentor, and I will not allow you to make her soft."

Blotchpaw shrunk back a little, shocked from the hostility of the RiverClan deputy. Thankfully Shellpaw came to his rescue before Shredtail could take advantage of Blotchpaw's sign of weakness.

"_I_ wanted to her to come with us, _not_ Blotchpaw. Stop making assumptions Shredtail, we are all part of the same clan, and we make each other stronger, not weaker" she bravely said, standing tall and proud, making the young cat seem older.

"No one talks to me like that" Shredtail whispered menacingly "You will treat me with respect and only talk when I tell you. I will let Songpaw go with you _this_ time, but next time, make sure you treat me as you should" and with that the deputy stalked away, his transparent shape seeming to flicker slightly.

"Thanks" Blotchpaw said under his breathe to Shellpaw. She only nodded and swiftly went to the den, leaving Blotchpaw to catch up. As he entered the den, Blotchpaw saw Songpaw curled in her nest, her flank rising up and down quickly. There was a scent of blood too and not just a little from a scrape, but a thick scent, like a cat had been bleeding heavily.

"H-help….me…" Songpaw murmured looking up with weak blue eyes as the two walked into the den. Rushing up to his once-was sister, Blotchpaw found many deep cuts all along her flanks, explaining where the blood smell came from.

"We need to stop this bleeding!" Blotchpaw panicked, unsure where to start. Yet again, Shellpaw swooped into action, grabbing pawfuls of moss from the surrounding nests and pressing them to the wounds. Blotchpaw did the same, but then felt terror filling his body as the moss soaked quickly with the red liquid.

"Blotchpaw it's okay. She won't die, I promise" Shellpaw said, glancing sympathetically at him. His fear must have been coming off him in large waves if Shellpaw knew he was scared. Nodding, he grabbed another wad of moss and pressed it against some wounds, watching and praying that his old sister would be alright.

But Blotchpaw wasn't praying to the Dark Forest, he was praying to StarClan.

-0o0-0o0-0o0-

[? POV]

"_The time is right; this is your chance to show you deserve this"_

"_But I don't want to! I don't want to hurt any other cats!"_

"_If you want to be great, you will! You must install fear and hurt those who won't have fear!"_

"_There _must _be another way! To create fear in those who don't have it! If you could just give me more time-"_

"_This cat will destroy your chance if we give you more time! Act now or lose your chance!"_

"_Fine! I'll do it!"_

"_I knew you would"_

"_Shut it Tigerstar"_

-0o0-0o0-0o0-

[Blotchpaw's POV]

"Songpaw?" Blotchpaw asked, seeing the she-cat stir from her sleep. Soon after her cuts had clotted, the apprentice fell off in a deep sleep, not waking anything Shellpaw and Blotchpaw did.

"Huh…?Where…oh! Blotchpaw" she purred, smiling at her brother the first time in moons. Blotchpaw sighed in relief, his sister was back.

"You scared me; after your wounds stopped bleeding you fell asleep and wouldn't wake up! Are you okay?" he asked, laying down and pressing against her.

"I'm fine….Shredtail just took me battle training, and it was a little rough…" she mewed, fear flashing in Songpaw's eyes as she remembered the events.

"Well you're okay now, and Shredtail has given you the day off. Me and Shellpaw were wondering, if you're strong enough, that you would go out hunting with us." Blotchpaw gently said, careful just in case Songpaw started to shut him out again.

With just a moment hesitation, Songpaw nodded, giving the two a meek smile. Happiness blossomed in Blotchpaw, maybe his old sister had finally forgiven him! But then dread washed over him again, remembering what he had to tell her.

"Well then come on you two! We should leave before Shredtail changes his mind or Mapleshade comes back" Shellpaw prompted, glancing out into the camp.

Nodding, Blotchpaw helped Songpaw up to her paws, and soon the trio was sneaking out the back of camp, careful to avoid any clanmates that will be suspicious of them. Shellpaw took the lead, with Songpaw behind her, and Blotchpaw taking up the rear, watching behind them.

As soon as camp was out of sight, Shellpaw turned towards her fellow apprentices and sat down. "Aren't we going hunting?" Songpaw asked, looking confused and, was Blotchpaw mistaken, or did he see a little fear in her eyes too?

"We lied, we just needed a reason to leave camp, the truth is we have to tell you something." Shellpaw said, resting her tail reassuringly on Songpaw. "Well what is it? What do you have to tell me?" Songpaw demanded, hostility hidden in her voice.

_What's wrong with her?_ Blotchpaw thought _Songpaw is usually so nice…it's just all she's been through today_ he decided. "I…I remembered something when I was a kit…when I lived in ThunderClan" Blotchpaw fumbled, scared on how Songpaw would react.

Instead of seeming surprised, Songpaw just let out a breathe, as if a great amount of stress had finally been left off her shoulders. But Blotchpaw continued, determined to tell her everything before his nerves got into the way.

"The Dark Forest and ThunderClan were fighting, and the Dark Forest won. Then Thistleclaw came and took me away from my home, my real family. You see Songpaw, you aren't really my sister, and neither is Larkpaw or Darkpaw. But as far as I am concerned, Larkpaw isn't your sister either. I saw her today snuggling with Hawkfrost like they were mates. I know this may be a lot, but I had to tell you. I told Shellpaw, and we both decided that the Dark Forest isn't as good as it seems. They are destroying the beauty of the wilderness, they ruined my life, and they are making inappropriate for the future generations" Blotchpaw finished, watching Songpaw for a reaction.

Her face was utterly blank, devoid of all emotions, and her jaw hung open. After a long moment, she finally uttered out, "So…you're not my brother?" in a small voice.

"No…not by blood, but I still think of you like my sister, and if you want to, we can keep it that way" he said gently, licking her cheek reassuringly.

"N-no it's okay. We shouldn't pretend what's not true, but we can defiantly still be friends, best friends at that" Songpaw smiled, not just a small one, but a large, completely happy one.

_Why isn't she sad about any of this? And she hasn't said anything on our opinion on the Dark Forest_ Blotchpaw thought, looking at his old sister skeptically. He felt immediately bad _Stop judging Songpaw so harshly! Why don't you trust her like you did when you were kits? Have you forgotten all the times she was there for you when Larkpaw and Darkpaw were so mean to you?_ He scolded himself.So he smiled back, and Shellpaw also grinned, laughing a little that Songpaw was alright.

"Oh, and I totally agree with you about the Dark Forest, seeing the way Shredtail beat me today, I think we should totally go against them" Songpaw added, grinning even larger at the two. Though Blotchpaw was taken aback, he tried not to show it. But Shellpaw on the other hand flinched and meowed "How could you say that so casually? This is the Dark Forest we are talking about, our trainers, rulers, and you're talking about them like they are a bunch of thugs!"

"Well they are!" Songpaw giggled "We can totally take them down! We just need an army!"

That's when Blotchpaw realized, either Songpaw was extremely brave or reckless, but most of all, the sweet little kit who used to cry from her sister's words was defiantly not the same cat that stood in front of him today

**Yeah I know, not any longer than my other chapters, but again I was having a mahor writers block so I didn't want to mess up the whole chapter more than it is xD anyways, read and review!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

**Hey, hey, hey! Im back (thanks to no homework and a *cough* demanding review xD) when I first started this fanfiction, I didn't think I'd get this far, but look at me now! On chapter ELEVEN xD.**

**Silverstar: -hides- here's your chapter, please don't hurt me…xD**

**Madison: you'll have to find out if your guess is right, im not giving anything away :3**

"There you are, you little maggot!" Mapleshade snarled as Blotchpaw padded into camp, rage glowing in her eyes.

_Fox dung!_ Blotchpaw silently cursed, totally forgetting that he ran away from Mapleshade this morning. Could it only had been this morning that he realized that he wasn't from RiverClan? It felt like moons ago, maybe even another lifetime.

"What did you think you were doing? Tackling me like that and leaving for the whole day?" Mapleshade hissed, unsheathing her claws as she stalked closer to Blotchpaw.

_Tackling?_ Blotchpaw thought, confused, then remembered. After he had the flashback, Blotchpaw seemed to have left the battle center and ran across the RiverClan territory. While in his crazed state, Blotchpaw must have attacked his mentor and ran.

"No excuse eh?" Mapleshade sneered, "All the better, come with me, I have a special treat for you after that little 'stunt'" Mapleshade laughed, padding to a corner of camp.

Blotchpaw followed, ears back and tail trailing, imagining the horrors Mapleshade had in store for him. _Cleaning the elder's den, which wouldn't be so bad, staying in camp for who knows how long, _ then a horrible thought hit him _Oh please not being Larkpaw's and Darkpaw's servants!_ He prayed silently.

"Dig me a hole" Mapleshade ordered, jerking Blotchpaw from his thoughts. "I want it large enough for you to curl up in, but not big enough for any extra space"

_Oh great, she's probably going to make me fill this hole with fresh kill and just bury it all._ Blotchpaw thought bitterly. Sinking his claws into the dirt, Blotchpaw flung away a pawful angrily away from him.

"Good" Mapleshade said sweetly, though Blotchpaw caught a snarl hidden within. "Come and see me after you're done"

-0o0-0o0-0o0-

_Finally!_ Blotchpaw quietly cheered. In front of him was his finished hole, just big enough for him when he curled up, but shallow enough that it would only take a small amount of prey to fill it up, which Blotchpaw convinced himself, was the punishment.

Blotchpaw padded cautiously into the Dark Forest den, the place where all the original Dark Forest members of warriors slept. "Mapleshade?" he meowed quietly, being greeted by the opening of cold amber eyes.

"What is it?" she hissed, not moving from her nest as she said this.

"I finished the hole" he whispered, looking around the den in awe. Blotchpaw had never been in here, and when he was smaller he hoped that he would have the privilege of sleeping in here. But now, after discovering what the Dark Forest did to him, Blotchpaw only wanted the privilege to kill every cat that slept in here.

"Fantastic" Mapleshade growled, rolling her eyes "Now go to sleep, that hole is you new den" she mewed as she closed her eyes again.

"What?" Blotchpaw meowed, not bothering to whisper. "What do you mean 'that's my new den?'"

"Shut up maggot!" Mapleshade snapped quietly, her eyes blazing as she opened them again. "I decided for your punishment you would get to have the luxury of sleeping in your own den, you get to sleep in a hole. Now go to bed, you have to make up a whole day of battle training tomorrow."

Fuming Blotchpaw stalked back to his new den, hoping that it would rain that night.

-0o0-0o0-0o0-

It had been a couple moons since that night, and many things had changed. Mapleshade let Blotchpaw roam more freely, training with him every few days, but most of the time letting him train on his own. He and Shellpaw had grown close, constantly training together under Robinwing as they plotted against their leaders.

But Songpaw was also closer to Blotchpaw, more than just a brother and sister close they used to have. Now instead of Shellpaw being the only she-cat on his mind, Songpaw was there too, fighting for his thoughts.

But one idea always dominated both of them, the destruction of the Dark Forest. Constantly rage would take over Blotchpaw making him tremble for long moments before he gained control over his feelings again. He was a great actor at camp, even though half the cats he saw he wanted to claw their heart out. But out with Songpaw or Shellpaw, Blotchpaw let all his feelings loose, sometimes scaring the she-cats.

Along with the Dark Forest came Larkpaw, his used-to-be sister falling in love with an ancient, dead cat. She was the source of his rage against the Dark Forest, hating them for making her throw her life away to love a cat she could never be with. Recently Blotchpaw noticed Larkpaw only ate the oldest, most rotten fish in the pile. She never cleaned her nest or fur, or even cleaned her wounds from battle training. Not that it would be any help, every day she came home with a new scar, more cuts, even though Hawkfrost said he never touched her.

"Blotchpaw, honey, are you okay?" Robinwing asked, looking at Blotchpaw cautiously. The apprentice blinked, feeling the uncontrollable rage fading away.

"Yeah, thanks Robinwing, I'm fine" he meowed, giving her a weak smile.

"How about we go for a walk?" Shellpaw suggested, looking at Blotchpaw fondly as she said it.

"Can we?" he asked, looking to Shellpaw then back to her mentor as he asked

"Of course, you guys have had enough training for one, just make sure you come back with prey" Robinwing warned, smiling at the two apprentices gently like they were her own kits.

_I'm a ThunderClan kit, you don't want me as you own_ Blotchpaw thought angrily, though he didn't show it in his face.

Nodding, the two apprentices walked out of the training center and to the outreaches of the territory.

"You've been having more than normal" Shellpaw commented after a while, looking ahead as she said it.

"Yeah, I know."

"Why won't you talk to me anymore?"

"I do talk to you."

"No, you just answer my questions, you don't _talk_"

"There is nothing to talk about"

"What about us? Or Songpaw? How about Larkpaw? Or Darkpaw? Anything!"

"I like you, I don't know how I feel about Songpaw, I don't want to talk about Larkpaw, and Darkpaw isn't a topic worth talking about"

Shellpaw whirled around, eyes ablaze "See? This is what I mean! I liked it before, where when I said hi, you would talk, you would talk about what prey you got today, what information you got from the Dark Forest, how much you like my eye's, what you and Songpaw did in the morning! Now your just shutting me off, and I'm starting to think you don't care about me anymore"

"I DO CARE!" Blotchpaw screamed, rage taking over him. "I CARE! I CARE! I CARE ABOUT YOU, THAT'S WHY IM SHUTTING YOU OUT! I CARE ABOUT SONGPAW, THAT'S WHY I DON'T THINK ABOUT MY FEELINGS FOR HER! I CARE ABOUT LARKPAW, THAT'S WHY I DON'T WANT TO TALK TO HER, AND I CARE ABOUT DARKPAW, BUT HE IS SAFE, SO I DON'T NEED TO TALK ABOUT HIM!" he screeched, a crazed look in his eyes.

Shellpaw shrunk back, trembling in fear as Blotchpaw yelled. But soon she realized he was heading towards the topic of the Dark Forest, and she needed to shut him up. Yelling this loud, any warrior in the apprentice's area would hear him loud and clear.

"THIS IS ALL THE DARK FO-"Blotchpaw was suddenly cut off by Shellpaw, getting tackled and pinned with a paw stuffed in his mouth. Taken over by rage Blotchpaw unsheathed his claws and pushed Shellpaw off roughly, only to quickly pounce on her as she fell.

His small dots of blood started to well around Blotchpaw's claws as he snapped back to reality, to what he was doing. Looking down in horror, Blotchpaw jumped off Shellpaw and raced away, leaving the she-cat lying on the ground, stunned.

-0o0-0o0-0o0-

_What have I become?_ Blotchpaw thought bleakly in his head as he raced away, the smell of Shellpaw's blood suffocating him. Now he had hurt his first crush, his best friend, and his old sister is going to get hurt if Hawkfrost decided he was done with her. _I have to make something right; I have to save Larkpaw_ Blotchpaw decided.

But before he could even start his search for redemption, Blotchpaw stumbled into a clearing, and the smell of metallic blood, much stronger than the specks on his claws, hit his nose. In the middle of the clearing, a red mess of a cat lay in a heap, a pool of blood around her.

Blotchpaw gasped, rushing up to the cat even though he had no idea who she was. Furiously licking the wounds Blotchpaw tried to stop the flow, but there was too much coming out too fast.

"You going to have to help me" Blotchpaw said between licks "If you don't, I think you may die okay?"

"I….I want to…join Dark…..Forest…." the cat breathed, her eyes opening, and a strange light shined in them. Those eyes….they looked rather familiar…almost like….Larkpaw's eyes!

"Larkpaw is that you?" Blotchpaw said, shocked. But the gleaming in the eyes were fading away, and her breathe was getting shallower by the second. "Larkpaw no!" he yowled, working hard to trying and stop all the wounds.

"Blotchpaw what's going on?" a voice meowed, startling him.

Blotchpaw whipped around, just to find Shellpaw standing there, watching him. "I found her like this, we need to stop the blood, it's Larkpaw!" he quickly explained, getting back to licking.

With only a moment hesitation Shellpaw went to work on Larkpaw's opposite flank, cleaning her wounds in long, smooth strokes.

Finally, Larkpaw slowly came back to life, until she had regained consciousness, opening her eyes from her near death experience. But instead of gratefulness, rage shown in her eyes.

**OOOH! What's gonna happen? You'll have to find out xD. Read and Review, and I think I need a warrior name for a special she-cat (*cough* Shellpaw *cough*)**


End file.
